Red light when charging at Tesla superchargers using A2Z adaptor?

[Ziggy]

Had a mostly great experience using an A2Z adaptor to charge at Tesla superchargers during a 2000 mile round trip from Chicago to Texas a few weeks ago. However, recently I've experienced several instances where a charging session at a Tesla supercharger would stop after 1-2 min, with the Green light turning Red and my R1s telling me to "Unplug and try again". After re-plugging in 1-3 times it has finally worked OK (in one case I did have to change stalls).

I've also experienced the early de-rating and "limited by charging station" messages.

usually arriving at the supercharger with less than 25% SOC (today arrived with 9%). Red light usually appears after the charger reaches max power (200-210 KW).

Anybody else having these issues?

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[B1uey]

I wonder if it is a "plug too hot" issue? I experienced something similar at a supercharger in SoCal this past weekend where it limited me to 150 kW, and the adaptor was super hot when I removed it b/c it was sitting in the direct sunlight on a 95 degree day.

The plug and charge also seems finicky which could explain the unplug and try again issue. I had plug and charge fail at 2 of the 4 superchargers I tried to use on the trip, and had to resort to using the Tesla app to start the charging session.

 

[Mellowyellow]

Sounds like the adapter is too hot. Are you keeping it in the frunk?

 

[Ziggy]

@Mellowyellow Adaptor kept inside (driver door storage), so it's cool at the start.

@bluey I'll try to start the charge from the Tesla app next time it happens and report back.

 

[UnsungZero_OldTimeAdMan]

Had a mostly great experience using an A2Z adaptor to charge at Tesla superchargers during a 2000 mile round trip from Chicago to Texas a few weeks ago. However, recently I've experienced several instances where a charging session at a Tesla supercharger would stop after 1-2 min, with the Green light turning Red and my R1s telling me to "Unplug and try again". After re-plugging in 1-3 times it has finally worked OK (in one case I did have to change stalls).

I've also experienced the early de-rating and "limited by charging station" messages.

usually arriving at the supercharger with less than 25% SOC (today arrived with 9%). Red light usually appears after the charger reaches max power (200-210 KW).

Anybody else having these issues?

How hot was ambient temp? What was the pack temp shown on center display?

 

[Ziggy]

@UnsungZero_OldTimeAdMan Today it was 84F outside and the pack was 93F at the start of the session, and 129F at the end. The adaptor was quite warm at the end. The session was marginal once it finally got going (205 KW max, but tapered to about 155 KW and stayed there for a while (limited by charging station most of this time), but finally down to 90KW @50% SOC.

I did a lot of hot traveling with 5-7 stops per day on my trip. This didn't start happening until the end of the trip (July 4th weekend). Happened again today (quick trip to Bloomington IL).

 

[UnsungZero_OldTimeAdMan]

@UnsungZero_OldTimeAdMan Today it was 84F outside and the pack was 93F at the start of the session, and 129F at the end. The adaptor was quite warm at the end. The session was marginal once it finally got going (205 KW max, but tapered to about 155 KW and stayed there for a while (limited by charging station most of this time), but finally down to 90KW @50% SOC.

I did a lot of hot traveling with 5-7 stops per day on my trip. This didn't start happening until the end of the trip (July 4th weekend). Happened again today (quick trip to Bloomington IL).

Charging curve sounds normal. And A2Z says their adapter can withstand temps far higher than what you observed. Not sure what could be causing the stoppage. Might be isolated to the supply side (Supercharger) or communication between the Supercharger and your R1's power management system. Try a native CCS1 DCFC and see if it happens there too? I've had this happened to me at EA once.

 

[TTedP]

same thoughts as Bluey.

Of the two instances it happened to me in July, one I assumed was hot plug and the second, plug and play wasn't working. The other 6-8 times worked perfectly.

The plug and play is really suspect. It worked great right until about the time Elon fired the entire SC team. I now use the Tesla app every time with no issues.

 

[Ziggy]

@bluey @TTedP tried using the Tesla app this afternoon:

1st try: charging started quickly and ramped to 217 KW @50% SOC. Then the session failed with a red light and a “unplug and try again” message.

2nd try: moved to different stall and did the same thing again. This time it didn’t fail after ramping to 215 KW. charged from 50 to 70% with no issues. Power did derate quickly to about 190 KW, but at this high SOC not surprising.

note: I used the Tesla app to stop charging. Interesting that the rivian reported “session stopped by charger” and the red light appeared. When I stop the session using the the rivian software/app the light turns white.

The moment of failure seems to be just after peak power in all cases.

 

[Ziggy]

Update: Same failure followed by success using the A2Z adaptor on a trip to Wisconsin (Janesville Tesla SC) on 9/16/24. I initiated the session using the Tesla app. Once I moved to a different dispenser everything worked fine, but the power did drop off to 130KW quickly (at 24% SOC, starting from 18%).

I wrote to A2Z describing the problem and requested they ship me the newer Typhoon Adaptor. Note that with the latest software update the error message I receive (red box) was "..let the adaptor cool for 15 min and then plug in at a different dispenser."

A2Z responded in less than three hours. They are shipping me a replacement that should arrive in a few days.

I'll post again with a followup. Maybe a problem with the thermocouple inside of the adaptor or the locking tab. I can tell you the adaptor is not hot at all when it fails.

 

[jjswan33]

FWIW just back from a 2k+ road trip with my official Rivian NACS adapter and I saw throttled speeds on multiple occasions. I don't recall any 'Unplug and try again' at superchargers. I did see one or two at other CCS chargers and a hot plug warning at a RAN station that was quite odd.

 

[UnsungZero_OldTimeAdMan]

note: I used the Tesla app to stop charging. Interesting that the rivian reported “session stopped by charger” and the red light appeared. When I stop the session using the the rivian software/app the light turns white.

Red because the vehicle did not expect session to stop. White, because you stopped it at the vehicle and that informed it to expect stoppage. That shows the Supercharger post does not communicate stoppage with vehicle. It just stops.

 

[mczouav]

FWIW just back from a 2k+ road trip with my official Rivian NACS adapter and I saw throttled speeds on multiple occasions. I don't recall any 'Unplug and try again' at superchargers. I did see one or two at other CCS chargers and a hot plug warning at a RAN station that was quite odd.

7/2025
I was charging at night yesterday and had this 'speed limited by charging station' message. The rivian provided adapter was very hot at the end of the session... I ll try the typhoon a2z later to compare...

 

[Dave Cundiff]

My "rule of thumb" at home, where I control the Level 2 charging speed, is that if I can't comfortably leave my hand on an electrical part for 30 seconds, it's too hot and I need to slow it down.

Unfortunately, the cord between the plug and the 2018 Siemens charger (but not the plug or socket themselves) gets too hot by that standard at 32 amps, so I throttle it down to 24 amps whenever we're sleeping.

That "can you hold onto it?" rule of thumb seems to work fine on level 2 chargers in the coastal Northwest. Not sure if it would allow much charging in the Arizona desert, where I've heard that people get second-degree burns when they fall on the sidewalk and can't get up by themselves....

Best to all!

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